about rajk

About Rajk

Rajk László College for Advanced Studies is the first college of it’s own kind at the Corvinus University of Budapest, and in Hungary as well.
A college for advanced studies is a friendly community, a study group and a student organization. Since the foundation of the college our primary goal is to help talented students, but the college means much more than that for those who live here, and for the country’s education system. The college helps its members to develop their knowledge, to set their goals and to reach them. It also prepares them to face the challenges concerning the whole of Hungarian society. The Rajk and other similar colleges offer education and community activities beyond the scope of the Corvinus University. While it often complements university activities, the Rajk is an independent, democratic organisation. All the important issues are handled by the members, including recruitment of freshmen. The Rajk values creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and professional competences. We believe that the diversity of our community benefits our innovative spirit.
Being a Rajk member is a definitive experience for the rest of our lives. Our graduates are connected through their shared experiences, and this kind of connection lasts for a lifetime. We believe that during our time spent at the college, we experience the most intensive sense of community, one which is unique to the Rajk compared to the similar colleges.
Although our community puts a great emphasis on dealing with the most elementary and practical issues, we consider it our mission to address the current issues of Hungary as well, to deepen our knowledge at the present problems of our society, and to take part in solving these problems.
Apart from talented students, the Rajk also attracts exceptional teachers, who consider it an honour to teach here. During our college courses, we get the chance to discuss and study the topics we are the most interested in, within a small, 4-8 group of students. Our educational system has been developing for a long time, and it proved quite effective, considering the professional life of our graduates.
During the 44 years of the existence of the Rajk, more than 700 students joined the Rajk Alumni.

Alumni

The college maintains a close connection with the graduates.
The Rajk realized the importance of such relationships right after the establishment. Therefore a number of celebrations and programs offer opportunities for current members and the alumni to get to know each other. While our alumni have quite diverse life experiences, most of our graduates are involved in business or academics. They help the college in various ways, but most importantly they are role models for current members. A significant portion of them became teachers in the college. The Rajk is proud of the graduates’ achievements and the role they play in contemporary Hungarian society.

Advisory Board

Members of our Advisory Board are selected by the college from the most prominent members of the Hungarian business, academic and public life. The role of the Board is to discuss and evaluate the recent performance of the college. The Board’s activity is very much valued for their unique perspective on the college and on the events of the surrounding environment. The members of the Advisory Board connect the college to the outer environment and guide our mission through their knowledge and social network.

Mária Dunavölgyi

She has been the executive director of the Budapest Stock Exchange, the president of OTP Leasing and in the same time the president of the Leasing Alliance. She has been working with Transparency International and as the South-East-European regional director of MasterCard. Currently she is the leader of the MBA program at Corvinus University Budapest.

Stefánia Kapronczay

She obtained a degrees in Law and in Sociology from ELTE. From 2005 she is working for HCLU (Hungarian Civil Liberties Union) and after a scholarship at Stanford she became the executive director of HCLU.

Miklós Koren

Miklós Koren was the recipient of the Heller-award for academic excellence. Currently he is professor of the CEU Economics Department and researcher of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. His research topic is the effect of imported machines and commodities on corporations and the dynamics of export flows. He holds a PhD from Harvard University. Before the CEU he worked in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Krisztián Orbán

He obtained his MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. Following that he got a degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy in diplomacy and international law. He has been working for McKinsey & Company for six years, then he became partner at the consulting firm Central European Management Intelligence. In 2007 he founded his own financial boutique, Oriens in Budapest.

István Stumpf

He is the founding director and active alumnus of the Bibó István CfAS, and founding president of Századvég Economic Research Institute. He was chancellery minister in the first government of Viktor Orbán between 1998-2002. Currently he is member of the Constitutional Court of Hungary.